Community Math & Science Prep

Math proficiency at 40.8% is closing in on the district average of 52.1%, and the climb from 2.1% in 2016 to 40.8% in 2025 is one of the steepest trajectories in the area. ELA at 24.2% is roughly half the district average of 47.1%, and while it has nearly tripled since 2016, the gains are less steady. The 8th-grade math score of 62.2% actually beats the district average, while 6th-grade math sits at just 13.3% — meaning students who stay through 8th grade are doing real work, but incoming 6th graders arrive far behind. Science proficiency at 23.3% is modest for a school that puts math and science in its name.

Parent and teacher trust scores are unusually high — 100% parent-teacher trust, 100% parent-principal trust, 100% teacher-reported instructional quality — though the teacher survey drew only 14 respondents, so those numbers carry a small-sample asterisk. Day-to-day attendance is fine at 91.4%, slightly above the district average, but 68% of students are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of the school year), which is a serious concern for learning continuity. Discipline has crept up, with suspensions rising from 2 in 2021-22 to 5 in 2023-24, giving this school a 4% suspension rate versus the district's 0.4%.

The student body is 78% Hispanic, 12% Black, 5% White, and 4% Asian, with an economic need index of 88.5 — among the higher-poverty populations in District 6. The school also serves 39% students with IEPs, well above typical middle-school rates, which signals substantial support staffing but also reflects how much catching up many students need. The surrounding Washington Heights neighborhood is majority Hispanic and working-class, with a median household income of about $55,786, so the school population closely mirrors its community.

Southern Washington Heights is a dense, working-class, predominantly Hispanic neighborhood where about 22% of residents live below the poverty line and only 8% of households own their homes. Despite modest incomes, home values hover around $750,000, reflecting the broader Manhattan market, and a third of adults hold a bachelor's degree. Just 9% of households in the immediate area include children, which is low for a residential neighborhood and means many local kids are part of smaller-than-typical family units.

Subway access is excellent: the C train at 163 St-Amsterdam Av is about a 4-minute walk, and the A, C, and 1 trains at 168th Street are each around a 6-minute walk.